sabato 23 febbraio 2019

Glenn Hauser logs February 22-23, 2019

** BULGARIA. 11600, Sat Feb 23 at 1315, rock music at only S2-S3, i.e. `The Giant Jukebox` on The Mighty Farty KBC, weekly 13-14 broadcast for Europe, but which Mark Coady, Ontario, keeps recommending for better reception than for North America, UT Sunday 0100 on 5960 via Germany --- not the case here (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** CANADA [and non]. 351 kHz, Feb 23 at 0703 UT, one NDB log before shuteye is YKQ, which is 500 watts from Fort Rupert - Waskaganish, Québec; and it`s overcoming 350 kHz RG, 400 watts at Will Rogers World Airport, OKC, a.k.a. Gally; 2502 km = 1555 miles, so it`s about 22 times as far away as RG (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** CANADA. 2749-USB, Feb 23 at 0437 S8 synthyl in French with marine weather, including minimums & maximums, past 0441+.

2598-USB, Feb 23 at 0441 I check the other frequency and hear same thing weaker, running just a split second ahead of 2749, as I am able to hear them on two different receivers. I can never be quite sure whether that be due to transmission delays or DSP-caused reception delays. 0443 one of them stops but shortly they are back almost //.

DXLD 19-07 quoted this info:

``Les Escoumins, Quebec maritime weather station VCF --- Located in the eastern part of the province of Quebec, VCF is on the north shore of the St. Lawrence River. It broadcasts its weather bulletins in bothEnglish and French as follows:
2598 and 2749 kHz 0437-0500 VCF Les Escoumins QC``

Among other times, this being the final one until 0847. But that info omits important data, true transmitter sites of each frequency as in:
http://www.ccg-gcc.gc.ca/Marine-Communications/RAMN-2018/Part2#21

``04:37 
Natashquan  2598J3E
La Vernière 2749J3E 
Radiotelephony --- Technical marine synopsis and forecasts for marine areas 215 to 221 and 301 to 302. Wave height forecasts for marine areas 215, 217, 219, 220, 221, 301 and 302. Notices to Fish Harvesters (when available)`` (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** CAYMAN ISLANDS [and non]. 1813.90-LSB, Feb 23 at 0449, ZF9CW working K9ZO in Illinois. Per his QRZ.com page, Stan H. Stockton is a big 160m contester, on Cayman Brac, but address in Siloam Springs, Arkansas, almost an Okie. 

I`ve found 160m crammed with hams, during a big contest, LSB all over the place, and many QRMing each other less than 1 kHz apart. Only below 1805 do I hear some CW, and one ragchewer stands out on 1880; something digital intermittently 1840-1845. There are frantic phone contest contacts exchanging 5&9s. Mostly US and Canadian of course, so I pick out the one foreign I log; some further east are working Europe. This QRhaM bodes ill for WA0RCR this weekend, such as during WORLD OF RADIO starting UT Sunday anytime between 0400 and 0505 recent weeks, on 1860-AM (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** CUBA. 9910-9980, Feb 23 at 0011, wall-of-noise jamming against 9955 WRMI not quite into R. Libertad yet, asymmetrically splattering out over this range. Something`s always wrong at the DentroCuban Jamming Command (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** CUBA. 6100, Feb 23 at 0516, this RHC is on but S9+50 in Spanish instead of English, supposed to start at 0500; also // Spanish on 6060 & 5040, leaving English only on 6165 and 6000. Consequently, the 6270 leapfrog mixing product of 6060 over 6165 is bilingual, attaining hefty S5. But 0656 recheck, all four 49m are back in English, with 6000 weakest at only S9. Something`s always wrong at RHC (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** CUBA. 15700, Feb 23 at 1453, CRI Plus relay this day is overmodulated and distorted, rather than JBM or suptorted. They can never get it just right! Something`s always wrong at RadioCuba (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** MEXICO [and non]. 6185, Feb 23 at 0412, trying to hear XEPPM, but its music is underneath talk in unknown language, making SAH of 200/minute = 3.33 Hz. 0400-0430 is the only evening time when CCI is now scheduled: AWR Turkish via AUSTRIA (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** NEW ZEALAND [and non]. 7330, Feb 23 at 1257, RNZI confirmed here, only S9 with flutterfading to S4, QSY to 6115 announcement, one bellbird chirp and off 1259*. I retune to 6115 which soon comes up, not much better than 7330 and I could easily believe it`s still on the NNW antenna only, not back to split with NNE antenna favoring us. There is also CCI from a fast SAH, probably the Saturday-only Vatican Radio in Chinese via Philippines not turned off yet by 1300*; violating Separation of Church & State (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** OKLAHOMA. 27185-AM, Feb 22 at 2110-2147+ continuous extremely repetitive loop of local CB music pirate including phrases such as ``pineapple man``. Lumberjack attempts to interrupt at 2116 producing a LAH briefly. Should anyone hear this stuff on skip, they will know they`ve got Enid (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** OKLAHOMA. 90.1-WBFM, Feb 23 at 1459 UT, open carrier/dead air from KUCO, our classical station. So much for the repeat of its signature show, `Performance Oklahoma`, part of which I missed on first airing UT Thu from 0200. I leave a radio on, and modulation finally resumes, mid-music at 1549, until 1559 ID with no back-announcement, apology or explanation of what happened, and into `The Record Shelf`, including Groucho Marx singing Gilbert & Sullivan, ``Tit-willow``. Maybe something to do with KUCO`s imminent installation of a new transmitter; but if some transmitter be radiating, adding modulation to it shouldn`t be too difficult. Later in day the 90.1 signal seems weaker than usual (Glenn Hauser, Enid, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** SOMALILAND [non]. 7120, Feb 23 at 0409, no signal from R. Hargeisa. It`s been missing for weeks, gone for good? Only other hamband intruder remains 7140, VOBME Eritrea, presumed the JBA AM carrier, but not the other one on 7180. 

ARRL reported Dec 13, 2018, that per IARU, Hargeisa had resumed after a break of several weeks, but we saw no definite reports of it since I had a long-path carrier Nov 29 at 1347; and Bryan Clark, NZ, reported it reactivated but with distorted audio Nov 17 at 1812 and 0328 (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** SPAIN. 9690, Feb 22 at 2155 as planned, I`m retuned exactly 24 hours later to REE after I thought I heard them announce frequency as 9620 --- but not any fq anmt today before 2200! Instead plugs special show Monday at 0130 (¿TU o HNE?), ``Festival del Cine desde Los Ángeles``. Obviously about the Academy Awards but no mention of same by name in either language. And multilingual generic REE IDs, fill with ``Sueño`` song about dreaming; 2200 no timesignal (even tho they often emit them at half-hours), and next show ``Marca España`` about worldwide trade. 

2300 recheck for Friday English segment: starts with flamenco music, Justin Coe says in honor of Paco de Lucía anniversary, 2306 starts his performance of ``Concierto de Aranjuez`` by Joaquín Rodrigo, 3-movement masterwork likely to occupy rest of the semihour. ¡Viva la música clásica en onda corta! (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** TURKEY. 6125, UT Sat Feb 23 at 0415, VOT is S9+10, modulating Turkish music; kept on it for `Letterbox`, but talk feature at 0418 is something historical; o yeah, L`box has moved 24 hours later to UT Sundays (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** TURKEY [and non]. 12035, Feb 23 at 1338, something in Thai S9-S6 way atop VOT in English, so no hearing Letterbox now --- spells out ``T-H-A-I at AWR.org``. So it`s KSDA GUAM as scheduled 1330-1400 due west. Making no het since VOT is on-frequency today. First time I`ve noticed this, as I must have been tuning to Turkey after 1400. 12085 has a very similar broadcast, i.e. KSDA in Lao, same time, same parameters, 1342 with rustic music, same signal but no CCI (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** U S A [non]. 7460, Feb 23 at 0406, S7-S8 African? music, which must be the Kirundi/Kinyarwanda service of VOA as scheduled 0330-0430 via BOTSWANA (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** U S A [and non]. WORLD OF RADIO 1970 monitoring: Ivo Ivanov, Bulgaria confirms: GERMANY, Reception of World of Radio via HLR on 6190 kHz CUSB on Feb.23
https://swldxbulgaria.blogspot.com/2019/02/reception-of-world-of-radio-via-hlr-on_23.html
0731-0800 6190 GOH 001 kW / 230 deg CeEu Sat, weak/fair signal``

Confirmed Sat Feb 23 at 1246 amid the 1230 on WRMI 9955, good S9. 

As usual no signal here for Sat 1531 on 9485-CUSB via HLR Germany; nor at UTwente SDR; but audible poorly at 1537 on SDR in Italy.

Alan Gale, England, also reports: ``Hi Glenn, HLR faded in here around 1455 UT so no problem hearing Media Network Plus and most of World of Radio today, though I did notice that while the audio sounded fine in the CUSB mode, when switched to AM there was noticeable distortion on it and it sounded a little raspy and overdriven. The signal faded out suddenly at 1552 but didn't come back again unfortunately. A shortmp3 file is attached showing the distortion on the AM signal. Alan``

Next:
2030vUT Saturday  WA0RCR  1860-AM MO non-direxional
2200 UT Saturday  WRMI   *9955 to SSE
0400vUT Sunday    WA0RCR  1860-AM [nominal 0415], ND
0830 UT Sunday    WRMI    5850 to NW, 5950 to WNW, 7730 to WNW 
1130 UT Sunday    HLR     7265-CUSB Germany to WSW
2130 UT Sunday    WRMI    7780 to NE
0230 UT Monday    WRMI    5950 to WNW, 9395 to NNW
0400vUT Monday    WBCQ   *5130v Area 51 to WSW
0430 UT Monday    WRMI   *9955 to SSE
0930 UT Monday    Unique  5045-LSB NSW ND
2330 UT Monday    WRMI   *9955 to SSE
* also webcast; direct linx to these and many others at:

Complete WOR sked, all affiliates, satellite, webcast, AM&FM, podcast:
http://www.worldofradio.com/radioskd.html
(Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** U S A. 7490.2, UT Sat Feb 23 at 0100, WBCQ starting `Allan Weiner Worldwide`; also I think on 3264.9 where I make out a trace of opening ``William Tell Overture`` theme; nothing at all audible on 9330. 7490+ is already fading out before AW finishes interjexions, so over to John Carver for his summary:

``Show started a few seconds early on 7490 which is coming in this evening. Prior to startup, signal was just shy of S9 but dropped to S5 when the theme song started. Timtron and Angela in the studio with Allan. Allan says they're broadcasting on 7490, 9330 and 3265.

First phone call at 0105 from Mr. Transistor Norm. Allan says the snow is so deep, they had to hire professional snow removal. Has a crew coming tomorrow to shovel the roofs off as they are expecting a foot of snow by Monday. Says they have four feet of snow in the fields as Tom Barna walks into the studio. Some jokes about Tom stopping by to use the bathroom in the studio as it's the warmest room on the compound. Norm says he's receiving all three frequencies well in FLA with a portable receiver using the whip antenna. 

Some long, deep fades but so far no political talk. Then I hear Allan state that HAARP is no more and that after the superstation starts broadcasting, he predicts that the conspiracy theories will start up again and the new antenna will be accused of causing all sorts of things. Even speculated that North Korea would complain to Trump about being bombarded by something harmful from WBCQ. Says that 9330 will be the primary frequency but they also plan on testing another but a deep fade made it impossible to hear the number. [did anyone get it?? gh]

When the signal comes back up, Tim is talking to Norm about the antennas he uses for working the hambands from his home QTH. Then the signal fades down and disappears at 0134. Can find no signal on 9330 and move to 3265. Signal is jumping between S3 and S5 with some light fades. Allan is talking radio with Norm but they're talking about MW. By 0141 the noise has come up making it difficult to copy the program. I miss the days when the program was also heard on 5130. Now Tim and Norm are talking again but difficult to copy.

Another phone call at 0150 but I can't tell what they're talking about. Hard to believe that WBCQ has become such a difficult DX catch. Lost the signal at 0157. Tuned to 5130 and the Militia program was coming in like gangbusters. John, Mid-North Indiana`` (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** U S A. 7730, UT Sat Feb 23 at 0404, this VG WRMI is playing World Music fill, including several of our favorites for the rest of the hour such as at 0443, ``Sandunga`` on marimba and orchestra. 0459 Zanotti ID cut off incomplete at 0500*. Too bad that much of WRMI automation is out of alignment now. Programming for this frequency-hour is unaccounted for on the WRMI skedgrids, except for VORW on Fridays; what of the other five days? More World Music? (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST) 

** U S A. 9395, Sat Feb 23 at 0501, S9+20 of dead air from WRMI, eventually JIP that airline commercial. Maybe it was switchover time from/to Oldies (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** U S A. 7570, Feb 23 at 1255, Supreme Master TV via WRMI now playing ``Für Elise``, yay, classical music on SW, but on piano I can notice the recording wowing. 1300 switch to other music including birdchirps. Ending ``part 2`` of something in English; and multilingual announcements; 1308 lengthy listing of worldwide platforms including WRMI frequencies 15770, 4980 and 7570 only, enumerating the exact number of countries each reaches on each continent! I had no idea SW was such a precise medium! 

Also refers to website for language schedule: http://suprememastertv.com/schedule ``/`` always uttered as ``forward-slash``, even tho the forward part is totally unnecessary [and I use ``slant``, much less threatening], as if one were to type a backward-slash in such a position, it would still work! As I just proved going to site http://suprememastertv.com\schedule which autodefaults to English: http://suprememastertv.com/en1/index.php with linx to specific dates --- but nothing resembling a language sked grid, just info about a few specific programs with no times shown! Enough time wasted on this (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** U S A. 5085, Friday February 22 at 1751, it`s another on-all-day 
from WTWW-3 rock music, only S4-S5 to here, not completely absorbed. 
But it was not on-all-night as of 1245 Feb 23 (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX 
LISTENING DIGEST)

** U S A. 17775, Sat Feb 23 at 2014, still no signal from KVOH, now sounding its second week of silence. Saturday-only English span should be 16-21 UT. Tnx to Ray, we know what happened, but nothing on website to explain it to all would-be listeners; everything looks fine: http://www.voiceofhope.com/station_americas.html (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** U S A. 620, Feb 23 at 0506 UT, unusually something in Spanish: certainly not kaput XEBU Chihuahua2, so XENK in EdoMex or something more exotic? Not a single US or Canadian 620 is listed in the NRC AM Log as SS, altho a few are ETHnic. Immediately hear an ID as ``Radio Oasis``, repeating phone number 469-397-0620, and plugging some event domingo a las 11 de la mañana, ``véngase`` to an address on Harry Hines Blvd. (!) That means this is Dallas, where HH is a major artery I have traversed, and ergo this is KEXB, until now known only as ``Experts in Business`` in English (ex-KWFT, 620 hijacked from Wichita Falls). Also has a het from 621, no doubt CANARY ISLANDS. KEXB websked confirms the program 7 days a week at 11 pm-5 am CT is indeed Radio Oasis, but no further info about it; unsure if it`s religious. = 05-11 UT now, 04-10 UT once DST be imposed. That means KEXB is now exactly 25% Spanish (unless there be even more I haven`t noticed), so worthy of an SS designation among its formats; U4 5/4.5 kW (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** U S A. 1460, 1480, 1600, Feb 23 at 1330 UT, confirming these three Metroplex stations are all in different Vietnamese, i.e. KCLE (weakest), KBXD, KRVA. How big an audience is there there? Google search turns up 85,000 in Dallas-Fort Worth, fourth place metro after LA, San José and Houston. Not clear how many be first-generation with primary language Vietnamese. At 1332, 1600 is playing a choral anthem: I bet it`s RVN, defunct (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** VENEZUELA [non]. More about the Venezuela Aid concert Fri Feb 22. ``Why not turn 9955 at least back on for this too? (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)``

As if in reply, Jeff follows up at 1703: ``We are also broadcasting the Venezuela Aid alive concert on 5950 kHz until 2000 UT``

5950 is of course as always here in daytime a JBA carrier as at 1750 check. Meanwhile, higher daytime frequencies on azimuths across North America remain silent. However, at 1730, the WRMI stream is playing, silently: http://wrmi.listen.creek.fm/stream

Jeff White replied at 1809: ``There have been some breaks in the audio we are getting from Colombia, but it’s OK right now.``

More about this:
https://www.latimes.com/world/la-fg-venezuela-aid-live-unfurled-2019-htmlstory.html

Richard Langley replied at 1754: ``Live with video here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J55O252e72k
-- Richard Langley``

I replied at 1855: ``Yes, but monitoring YT, instead all I see is a still photo of huge crowd, and precious little music since 1830, rather impassioned speeches, all in Spanish.

Found this also on the Telemundo TV network, with full-motion video and audio. Backdrop and corner bug map of Venezuela includes Guyana, claim apparently also approved by the anti-Maduros. 1931 pause for commercials, to return? Glenn``

Yes. The ``Guyana es nuestro`` low-res outline map also shows 6 tiny islands off the coast. Oh oh, are they claiming the ABCs too? No, consulting an atlas there are six fully YV islands between ABCs and Trinidad, including a favorite ham DX-pedition target, Aves, where I guess there are also birds, at the western end, and the largest, Margarita at the eastern.

As for Guyana, the Venez claim is thinner than the whole country now, evidently the western half bounded by the Essequibo River, and not including Georgetown (but what about Jonestown?). This appendage is reminiscent of another flaccid hanger the USA has on its southeast.

Richard Langley, UNB, replies the next day Feb 23 at 1501: ``I had continuous live excellent video and audio for several hours on one computer connected to the university's network while doing work on another. Glenn, you could have been having computer/network issues. Pretty well the only English heard was when Richard Branson talked and a few words from some of the performers like Miami-resident Danny Ocean. Not all rock music. Some nice Latin American folk music, too. At one time, over 43,000 people were watching the YouTube feed. It is replaying this morning as I enter this. -- Richard Langley`` (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST) 

UNIDENTIFIED. 2940.14, Feb 23 at 0430, off-frequency with some JBA talk, language uncertain, S4-S6 vs storm crashes as spring is nigh. Cannot detect any signal on likely fundamental 1470.07 producing second harmonic. As I mentioned in October, one known harmonic on 2940 is HJNT Cali, Colombia, and this is probably it. MWOffsets shows three possibilities:
1470.063 USA WBCR (Alcoa, TN) 2017-03-30 
1470.075 CLM Radio Huellas (Cali) 1100-0500 2015-12-15 
1470.08  EQA HCED1 Ecos de Cayambe (Cayambe) 2005-07-04
(Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

UNIDENTIFIED. 7335, Feb 23 at 0408, S6-S8 of dead air. Nothing at all scheduled now among broadcasters; the next being R. Nigeria, Kaduna via France from 0500 (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

UNIDENTIFIED. 15990.204, Feb 23 at 1457, JBA carrier, maybe trace of modulation. Such a WOOB frequency instantly brings to mind Sound of Hope, but chance of 100 watts propagating thus is nil. Nor is 15990 one of the scores of SOH frequencies in Aoki/NDXC nor Wolfgang Bueschel`s monitoring. Maybe some spur if not a local device; no spurs from Cuba on 15 or 13 MHz today (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

This report dispatched at 2034 UT February 23